ascherer 

In parallel with top506's build I finished the initial build on the Free Spirit Ted Willimas frame I bought from @nlerner. It's set up as a NYC commuter for one of my sons. As such, a little patina is a good thing. Except for the brakes and levers everything is either from my bins, C&V forum members, other lists, and the C&V Box o' Crap. Pedals and saddle may be placeholders or he may opt to keep them, we'll see once we start fitting him. Saddle and maybe the bars will drop, I'm much taller.


Wide range indexed 10-speed cassette with Microshift rear, Tiagra Front and a sweet Maxy cloverleaf pattern crankset I've been hoarding for over a decade waiting for the right build.



Cockpit. No Idea whether he'll like these bars, but I hope so. Still need to mount a bell.


Lights came with the dynamo wheel, they're very much like B&Ms I have but with plastic bodies. I started the build with Weinmanns but decided he's be better off with dual pivots.



Bringing up the rear -


My favorite part. I provided the design refresh for the sticker and now it's on a build.


On a quick shakedown I found it handled quite nicely. The front end felt similar to the Super Course I set up in a similar manner for another son - kind of light and a little livelier than I expected. My hope is that the purported flexiness folks report with these frames will be an asset on bumpy NYC/Brooklyn streets. Now I have to add it to my signature and move on to the next project.

3speedslow

I have had one of these bikes for awhile and have dressed it up like a princely son. It has been one of my grail bikes since I went back to riding the older bikes.


I like your build and have several Schwinn decked out like it too. Maybe one day I will relax the hype I have for it and bring it into the casual riding fold.


Thanks for showing your new handoff!

nlerner

Great stuff, Andy! And, of course, this thread needs some Sears catalog love:

Kabuki12

Man those are heavy bikes. It reminds me of the Schwinn LeTour I rebuilt for my mailman. It was close to 30lbs and it rode nice and smooth. What surprised me is that it actually climbed fairly well with the low gearing that came with it.

juvela

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thanks for sharing this wonderful build!

LUV those big arcs on the Maxy chainset...reminiscent of a certain Parisian cycle maker...

the Scheffer-Klute mudguards you selected/found really look like they belong on there

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suggestion/idea -

we now have more than enough members with this model would like to propose someone begin a thread for them so that each owner can share their pride and joy all in the same thread, for owners to compare with each other and share tips...


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gugie 

Damn, I rode that Ted Williams to Fenway Park in 2017 when Neal had it set up as a two speed autoshifter! Great memories.

Note that shipping weight was 33 lbs, which would have included the shipping box.

top506

IIWM, I'd flip the North Road bars, but that's just me.
Did you have any trouble with the 27,2 seatpost? Mine is going to require some serious reaming.

Top

ascherer 

Both observations are spot on. It seems like the original spec was the other Maxy style, I much prefer this one.

Another facet of provenance...this frame has true C&V celebrity status.

Bar flip is an option for the new owner, remains to be seen. SR seatpost slid right in. Perhaps Neal made my life easier in more ways than one?

nlerner

I didn’t need to make any mods to fit it with a 27.2 post. In fact, when Mr. @gugie rode it, I had a Campy Record post in there for a little Campy bling. Not sure how Ted would have felt about it; perhaps he’d have seen it as a DiMaggio homage and therefore a slight?

juvela

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the example i had came fitted with an early edition of Sakae Ringyo Silstar with the odd three degree taper so suspect it may have been a first year example

recall gear ensemble was Shimano Titlist but recall little else of its kitting...

took it in about 1980 and broke it down, placing the frame in the racks

eventually found a buyer for the frame

its been so long now cannot recall if i simply sold it as a frame or if the buyer had me build it into a complete cycle

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noobinsf 

When I rode my long wheelbase Puch as a city bike, I flipped the porteur bars to get a little rise from them. It made an excellent city commuter because it was very stable with a single heavily loaded pannier. I bet he'll love it.